Thinking of Christmas?

It’s not too early to start planning for Christmas.

Puzzles/word games- good for the brain and keep kids and adults busy for hours.

Australian Word Puzzles More then 600 Puzzles from Pan Macmillan is the perfect gift or stocking filler.

Online word games have taken the world by storm. You can now hone your skills with these five-letter word puzzles at any time, at any place, and more than once a day!

More than 600 puzzles.
All spellings are from Australian English.
Puzzles start off simply and build up to a challenging level.
Hints are supplied if needed.

Here are a couple of tasters 🙂 The hint for 9 is tease and the hint for 10 is valley

Instructions: Each puzzle consists of three to six rows. The last row is left blank for you to write the solution word, and the others each contain a “guess” word as a clue. All the words are five letters long.

Every letter in a “guess” word appears in a box with a black, grey or white background.

A grey box contains a letter that appears in the solution in a different position. If a letter in a white box doesn’t appear at all elsewhere in the guess word, that letter is not in the solution at all. If, however, a letter in a white box does appear elsewhere in the “guess” word , count the number of times it appears in a grey or black box. That’s how many times that letter appears in the solution.

Once a letter has been eliminated, you can cross it off in the alphabet which is printed beside each puzzle. That way you can keep track of the letters which may be in the solution.

When all the guesses are combined, there is only one possible word that the solution can be.

Good luck and let me know in the comments what you think the solutions are.

Review: The Bumper Treehouse of Fun Book – Andy Griffiths, Jill Griffiths, Terry Denton

The Bumper Treehouse of Fun

Andy Griffiths, Jill Griffiths & Terry Denton

Pan Australia

ISBN:9781760988890

RRP $19.99

Description:

The Bumper Treehouse Fun Book is packed with over 300 pages of treehouse-inspired fun!

With the FUNNEST activities from the Treehouse Fun Books and a whole heap of brand new ones, there are pictures to draw, stories to write, codes to crack, sudokus to solve, colour-ins, dot-to-dots, mazes, crosswords, word searches, spot-the-differences and some activities that we don’t even have a name for!

So, what are you waiting for?

Grab a pen, pencil, crayon or spooncil and come on in!

My View:

The perfect gift for a child you know – word searches, colouring in, spot the differences, decode the message, dot to dots – this makes a great gift to take on holidays or for school holiday entertainment – its bound to keep any child happily engaged for hours.

Review: In the Bush Book and Jigsaw Puzzle – Roland Harvey

In the Bush Book and Jigsaw Puzzle

Roland Harvey

Allen & Unwin

                ISBN: 9781760878429

RRP $19.99

Ages 5-10

 

Description:

A fabulously entertaining book and jigsaw gift set from one of Australia’s favourite illustrators.

 

Wombat Flat’s the best!

We camped out near the Cascades, stayed up all night to see the sunrise, nearly got snowed in at Mt Misery … and rode across the Razorback.

And a squillion other things that you’ll find out when you come with us to Wombat Flat.

 

A delightful book and puzzle gift set of an Australian classic for the whole family to enjoy. The 400mm x 490mm jigsaw comprises 150 pieces.

 

https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/books/childrens/In-the-Bush-Book-and-Jigsaw-Puzzle-Roland-Harvey-9781760878429

 

 

My View:

This book and puzzle combination were something I was very excited to receive; previous to this I have only discovered one other similar combination, this is such a rare and wonderful find. Puzzles for this age group (150 pieces) are rare, it seems there are plenty of toddler age-appropriate puzzles everywhere you look; floor puzzles, wooden peg puzzles, children’s’ tv character related puzzles, puzzles of a maximum of about 20 pieces but puzzles that are suitable for the next age group – pre-schoolers are a hidden gem and I am glad I have discovered one more to add to the collection.

 

The puzzle component of this combination gift pack (excellent for Christmas – you still have time to order) has 150 pieces – perfect for those inquisitive minds; perhaps read the hilariously funny hardback book first then work on the puzzle together, discussing sections as you complete. This is a great resource – such a fun way to develop those comprehension, language and fine motor skills.

 

Review: Eddie Woo’s Magical Maths 2 – Eddie Woo

Eddie Woo’s Magical Maths 2

Eddie Woo

Pan Macmillan Australia

ISBN: 9781760981976

RRP $19.99

 

Description:

A bumper book of maths fun stuffed with things to draw, puzzle, invent, order, unscramble, code, decode for kids aged 7+ years from Australia’s best known maths man. There’s magic in maths – if you know where to look…

 

 

AUTHOR Eddie:

Eddie Woo teaches mathematics at Cherrybrook Technology High School, Sydney. He has been teaching maths for more than ten years.

 

In 2012, Eddie started recording his lessons and uploading them to Youtube – creating ‘Wootube’. Since then, he has amassed a following of more than 1 million subscribers and his videos have been viewed more than 60 million times.

 

In 2018, Eddie was named Australia’s Local Hero of the Year and shortlisted as one of the top ten teachers in the world.

 

 

My View:
This is the perfect book for your school aged child to engage them with the fun world of maths – and yes maths can be fun.  There are puzzles, word hunts, games, colouring in, “spot the differences” to name just a few of the fun exercises here …I think some of these can be played with younger kids if they are supervised/assisted by an adult.  My grandson (4 ½ years) and I will enjoy playing “sprouts” pps 158- 160 – a game about connecting dots. Because maths is all about patterns, and our universe is extraordinarily patterned, you will find something  here that can interest everyone. I learned my art practice is about fractals, so much fun to be had they won’t even know it maths they are learning 😊

 

 

Thanks, Eddie, for a fabulous fun and entertaining book.  I am glad I have discovered you and your maths books, now to discover your YouTube videos.

 

PS – this will make a great Christmas present for someone you know.